MARK TWAIN'S SPEECHES.
With an Introduction by William Dean Howells. New York and London: Harper & Brothers, 1910. Original red cloth with front cover monogram in gilt.
First Edition of the first collection of Twain's speeches -- 104 of them, spanning his entire career -- published two months after he died. These speeches contain many of the witty epigrams for which Mark Twain (like Oscar Wilde) is widely known; when called upon to provide a signature or inscribe a book, he usually included an epigram.
This is a surprisingly uncommon book -- perhaps because Harper assumed there would be little public clamor for such a volume. It is a near-fine copy -- scarcely any wear, no soil other than a couple of little marks on the spine, and with less than the typical amount of fading of the spine. Blanck 3513. Item #15031
Price: $225.00